One of our great symbols is the American flag,13 red and white stripes corresponding to the number of original stats on a rectangular piece of color, one corner blue with 50 white stars for 50 states.

　　美国的象征之一是国旗,长方形布上13道红白相间的条纹表示美国原来的州数,蓝色一角上印着的50颗白星代表50个州。

　　You see the flag everywhere now, "what so proudly we hail.” It means the World Trade Center happened to all of us. "We"re proud to be Americans, "say flags on front porches in small towns across the country. Some homes seem to have been built to fly the flag. This wouldn"t be complete without it; just perfect. "We"re American too" say the flags inelegant glued to the city apartment windows. The declaration of patriotic intent is everywhere, the simplest as persuasive as the displays where one was considered not enough. Rockefeller Center with 150 beauties is in show business, a stirring sight although it"s unlikely that management there loves our country more than the owner of the smallest small business, displaying just one.

　　现在是四处都能看到国旗,"是什么让我们感到骄傲。"那表示世贸中心事件与每个美国人息息相联。美国各小城镇的前廊悬挂着的国旗体现出"身为美国人的自豪"。有些房子仿佛就是为了挂国旗而建的。没有国旗便不完整;挂上后便完美了。"我们也是美国人"--这是斜贴在这所市内公寓窗外的国旗传达出的信息。处处洋溢着爱国宣言,从小处看最能让人信服这一点,比如,有些人认为挂一面国旗还不足够。洛克菲勒中心高高飘起150面美丽的美国国旗,景象令人叹为观止,但这并不说明此处的管理者就比只挂出一面国旗的小商店店主更爱国。

　　The Annin flag company makes most American flags. They have more business than they can do now. You don"t have to go to Annin to buy a flag though. Flag sales are a street corner cottage industry. Furtive operatives set up shops, to them the buck means more than the banner.

　　安宁国旗公司出产全美大部分的国旗。现在他们的生意是应接不暇。但要买国旗并不非得到安宁公司。街角也有出售国旗的摊子。对于那些偷偷售卖国旗的街贩,钱比国旗更重要。

　　The color of our flag and the numbers of stars and stripes are ordained, but there is no rule regarding dimension. There are tiny flags on sticks made in China. This grand flag is so big on a building in New York that it had to be continued around the corner. This beauty hangs from the side wall of a fire house. And you wouldn"t want a dirty flag so they wash them.

　　美国国旗的颜色、星星的数目、横条都是规定好了的,但尺寸大小就没有限制。也有中国制造的小签国旗。纽约一栋大楼外的国旗巨大得要转弯接着挂起。消防局的墙上挂着一面国旗。如果不想挂脏国旗就像他们一样拿去清洗吧。

　　Everyone wants to be associated with the flag. America and Yale, America and Episcopalians, America and J.P.Morgan, America and Maxell, America and the Ritz Tower.

　　人人都想跟国旗扯上关系:美国和耶鲁、美国和圣公会教徒、美国和摩根、美国和万胜、美国和丽晶大厦。

　　There are inevitably people who are more anxious to appear patriotic than to be patriotic. They treat a fine line between patriotism and commerce. The flag is everywhere in close proximity to a business interest. It sells shoes and shoe repair, women"s dresses. The American flag invites diners to foreign restaurants, Japanese, Italian, even Afghan.

　　难免也有人摆出爱国姿态而非真正爱国。他们在爱国主义和商业间徘徊。随处可见对国旗感兴趣的商家:卖鞋和修鞋的,女士的裙子。美国国旗吸引顾客到外国餐馆用餐――日本餐馆、意大利餐馆、甚至阿富汗餐馆。

　　There is an official flag code but it is routinely ignored. It is not to be used as a awning or a canopy or plastered to the hood of a car. The code says the American flag is not to be used as decorative clothing. Some find it irresistibly fashionable though and we are more amused than they.

　　政府有国旗用法的规定,但常给人们忽视了:国旗不能拿来当餐布,不能做遮篷、檐篷或汽车贴条。美国国旗按规定是不能用来设计服装的――有些人却觉得难以抵制此诱惑,我们比他们还更乐在其中。

　　This is how the star spangled banner was meant to be flown on the end of a pole of its own, free to wave majestically in our own free air.

　　美国国旗应当挂在旗杆上,自由自在地在美国领土的上空美丽庄严地飘扬。